Hieroglyphics Album: “Full Circle Tour Live”

To most people, touring the country and doing what you love - collecting money, sex, booze and drugs along the way - sounds like a great idea. Well, surprise, it is, which is why the Hieroglyphics crew, joined by Little Brother, Z-Man and Encore, took a camera crew with them on their last national tour in 2004. And the 90-minute DVD is filled with a little of everything.

The DVD starts off with the crew preparing to leave Oakland, discussing the hardships of life on the road. But the action doesn't kick in until they hit Solana Beach. For the first time during the movie we witness a live performance and the aftermath of groupies, both male and female - a pattern that carries through the flicks. Some of the more memorable moments were Tajai punking a kid at a signing session, some 12-year-old rapping a Deltron song, and Z-Man assisting a passed-out dude. Amongst the drama, Opio gets arrested and Encore fusses about the merch dude, eventually playing himself out to look like a buster. It's interesting to see the dynamics of the crew, with Del always seemingly out of view, Tajai being the livest, and Casual on permanent chill mode.

Most hip-hop DVDs are one-dimensional, showing only the glamour side of things. But this one does a good job of showing how exhausting touring is, but the fun that comes with it. There is also a second disc of all live performances, so now you gotta cop it.

- Corey Bloom

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If you're a fan of Hiero, you shouldn't even be reading this - buy the album! The DVD is great, it gives a good example of what it's like to be touring out on the road. The sound is spotty at times though, but it does have a ton of great footage from the live shows. This is a must buy if you went to a show when it came to your city.

The real treat in this package though is the live CD that comes with it. It has 17 tracks, all but two (bonus studio tracks) recorded live at the shows, and really shows the versatility of the crew. This isn't just a live version of Full Circle, it's got tons of older stuff on it and even some unreleased material. As far as I know, this is the only live Hiero CD out there (barring bootlegs) - most live hip-hop albums don't sound great, but this one is the exception. Hiero sounds just as great live as they do in studio. If you made it to the show, this will bring back good memories, and if you couldn't make it, this brings a lot of stuff you missed.

Any fan of Hiero, hip-hop, or good music needs this album and DVD.

Overall this is a great DVD. All the hiero members blow it up on the mic, especially Del, the few scenes he's in are unreal, thats all I can say. The only flaw was the actual production of the DVD itself. Sometimes the audio fades in and out.